December 4, 2008

Owie!

It’s a given that moving from Hawaii to the mainland is an expensive proposition. I used an online calculator to work out estimated charges several months ago. The written quote I finally got today (several days after it was promised) is in the same ballpark. The company estimates my cost for moving from Oahu to Scurry, Texas, where I’ll be staying with a cousin while I shop for a new home, at close to $8000. Ouch! So much for hoping that I had over-estimated the cost.

This is the part that I wasn’t prepared for. Dealing directly with the shipping company (instead of a moving contractor) means that I have to find a trucker to get my container to the Port of Honolulu after I load it myself. I haven’t contacted local trucking firms yet, but I’m betting their fee will add another thousand to my costs. I’ve requested “door to door” quotes from some local moving firms, but they’ll be acting as middleman between me and the shipper, so I’m thinking their quotes will be even higher than the one I already have.

If I’d been able to move several months ago I’d have been able to pay for the move upfront. Unfortunately, living expenses over the last few months have severely depleted my reserves and I’ve had very little work coming in to replenish the coffers. I’ll have to put most of the moving expenses (plus airfare for myself and Lance) on my credit card. If I sell the house quickly and pay off the balance that won’t be so bad, but interests charges will be astronomical if I have to carry the blanace for an extended period of time. If finding a buyer takes too long I might even end up having to rent the house out. I don’t have any experience managing a rental property (unlike the experts at Outer Banks rentals) so I’d have to hire a local property management firm to do that for me - more expenses to be paid out before I get settled and start making money again. Can you say “nightmare?”

I keep repating my mantra, but it’s not working very well right now. Maybe if you chant along with me? Okay, everyone - all together now: It’s only money. It’s only money. It’s only money …

Technorati Tags: Hawaii, moving expenses

December 3, 2008

They’re everywhere!

A couple of weeks ago I had to buy crickets for the Jackson’s Chameleon I captured after Lance cornered it in the yard. I couldn’t find any food for him in the house or yard, though insects are usually available in abundance. I turned the Jackson’s lose after I found out what all the keiki in the neighborhood already knew: I couldn’t sell him because any kid that wants one just needs to beat the bushes here on the Waianae Coast and will surely find one for free. Now that I don’t need insects they seem to be everywhere again. A couple of nights ago I noticed something strange about the antenna on my car.

I had to get a little closer to make sure my eyes weren’t deceiving me. Sure ’nuff, it was a praying mantis, pretending his brilliant green coloring was invisible against the black of the antenna.

Tonight’s special visitors include this giant grasshopper (he’s about four inches long,) swarming ants and some small black beetles that have been swarming on the carport for the last week.

I haven’t seen the chameleon since two days after I tuned him loose. He’s probably still wandering around the garden, but I wouldn’t mind if he wanted to patrol the inside of the house for cockroaches every now and then. He might as well make himself useful if I can’t sell him for cash. There’s not even any sense in getting life insurance quotes for him or his gecko cousins out on the carport. They’re all outlive me and be fat and happy for a long, long time if they stay around here.

Technorati Tags: Hawaii, insects, Jackson’s chameleon

November 21, 2008

The Keiki Slippah Wish Fund

Do you believe in magic? What about miracles? Do you believe wishes can come true? I do. I believe it because of you, my readers. Last year, right about this time, I told you about Auntie Lynn’s wish that the children in her housing project could all have shoes. Not just any shoes, though. They needed slippahs - those cheap rubber sandals that are ubiquitous in Hawaii. Children lose them, of course. The weather is always warm and slippahs can get in the way of in impromptu game of ball or a climb on the jungle gym. They’re not much good for walking on the beach, either, so off they come, often to be forgotten and left behind. For some families the price of a replacement pair of slippahs is too dear, so the children remain barefooted. Auntie Lynn wanted to help fix that. She made her wish and shared it with some friends, but she didn’t sit back and wait for it to come true. She knew the secret to wishes and magic and miracles: sometimes we have to help them along.

Auntie Lynn’s wish and a lot of hard work made The Keiki Slippah Wish Fund happen. That was in 2005 and the fund has been growing each year. More importantly, the reach of the project has grown. Each year new distribution points have been added. Last year it finally came to my own Waianae Coast, to families who live on the beaches and in homeless shelters. Lynn says that happened because of me, but that’s not quite right. I found out about the fund last year and blogged about it, but it was you, my readers, who brought it to the Waianae Coast. Your generosity amazed and astounded me. Sure, I prodded you a bit. I told you I would match your contirbutions and you couldn’t resist making me do just that! It was your support that swelled the funds to magnaimous proportions so that the children of the Waianae Coast and another housing project could have new slippahs for Christmas.

Slippah don’t last forever and it’s time for you to help again. I can’t offer the same challenge as last year. I can’t afford to match your generosity this time around. As most of you know, my work has declined so much that I’ll soon be leaving my beautiful Hawaii. Since my own contribution to the Slippah Fund will be less this year than last year, I’m hoping some of you can help make up the difference. A little money can buy a lot of rubber slippahs, toys, food and clothes for the keiki who need them. Will you pitch in and make this dream happen? Lynn believes you will. She’s added several new distribution points this year because she believes that you and others will help her cover the territory. For the first time ever, The Keiki Slippah Wish Fund is even spreading off-island. One of my readers asked last year if the project could be brought to Kauai. Asked and granted! That means more slippahs are needed, though, and that means more money needs to be collected.

ChipIn is the preferred donation vehicle, but if you wish, checks can
be
mailed to:

Blaine Fergerstrom
1689 Piikea St.
Honolulu 96818

Make check payable to
Blaine Fergerstrom with note "For Lynn’s Slippah Project."

I’m going to make this as easy as possible for you. Click on the ChipIn button above and you’ll find instructions for giving. Give a little - slippahs are cheap and even a few dollars can buy several pairs. Give a lot - there are so many children whose lives can benefit from you donation. Give what you can, but please - do give!

Technorati Tags: charity, Christmas charity, Hawaii, keiki, slippahs, shoes, Keiki Slippah Wish Fund

October 6, 2008

Ack! It was on my foot!

I’ve started a list - well several lists, actually. I need a lot of lists on various subjects to get me through this move. The specific list I’m referring to, though, has two columns: Things I’ll Miss When I Leave Hawaii and Things I Won’t Miss. The fellow pictured above is responsible for a new addition to the negative list. Last night I went into the office to check my email one last time before going to bed. As often happens, I stayed online for a while reading tweets and seeing who had visited my blog. I was kind of settled in and comfortable when I felt a tickle on my right foot. It felt just like Lance does - he likes to nap at my feet when I’m in the office, so I thought he had shifted and a whisker had grazed my foot - until I heard a noise behind me and realized that the beagle was sleeping in the hallway. Ulp! I didn’t want to look. I actually said, right out loud: Please, please, please let it be a cockroach! I brushed it off with my other foot before even looking because I had a bad feeling it wouldn’t be a roach. Good thing I did, too, because if I’d seen it first I might have reacted badly & the sucker probably would have bitten me. I have acute allergic reactions to all kinds of things. I don’t want to find out if centipedes need to be added to that list. I freaked out a little when I saw it (big, bad bug lady that I am!) then ran for a can of insecticide I keep in the utility room. I’ve got several half-packed boxes scattered around the office, so I had to play hide-and-seek for a while before I found my invader again - he was under the little rolling cart right next to the desk. Professional that I am, I know that a split-second burst of pesticide would have done the job, but I abandoned thirty years of experience and training - this guy was in my home, after all. If I’d had guns and Nikon rifle scopes handy I might well have blown a hole in the floor making sure that he was well and truely dispatched. Yeah, I get a bit girly about certain types of many-legged critters, centipedes among them. I didn’t quite empty the can, but I gave him a good soaking, then turned off the light and shut the office door (the air was too toxic to work in there anymore.) I had to hunt for him again this morning - he’d crawled behind a box to die. He twitched while I was taking the picture - I use low toxicity pesticides, so they don’t always kill instantly. He’ll die eventually. In the rubbish can outside.

We don’t usually wear shoes inside our homes in Hawaii. I’ll probably forsake that habit once I move. I think I’ll start practicing today, wearing shoes as I continue packing and painting. And maybe coveralls and gloves, too.

Things I Won’t Miss When I Leave Hawaii:

Technorati Tags: centipedes, Hawaii, insects

October 4, 2008

I haven’t been hiding!

I’m packing for a move. Well, acutally, I’m packing to get a bunch of stuff out of the way so I can paint the interior of the house. I’m getting it market-ready and hope to have it listed for sale in a few weeks. As much as I love living in Hawaii, I can no longer afford it. Work has been scarce, the cost of living is high and it’s time for me to move on.

I’ve been packing non-essentials. Books, games & puzzles, DVDs and videos - things I don’t “have to have.” I’ve packed some of the dishes and kitchen ware that will move with me. Right now I’m using my extra set of dishes and will put them in the last garage sale before the move.

The shed on the carport is filling up with stuff I’ll put in my first garage sale next weekend. It’s mostly stuff that I don’t use at all and have been accumulating in a garage sale pile for a while.

The chances are slim to none that I’ll get any diving opportunities where I’m going, so I’m selling the tanks, wet suit, skin and all of my gear. I’ll put “diving gear, electronics and building materials” on the garage sale signs to draw folks in.

This embarrassing mess was the first chore I tackled this week. The front shed has been a mess since my new room was built a few years ago. They guys doing the work tossed things in every which way and I never quite got around to re-organizing it …

… until this week. Now I can find the tools and supplies I need for repairs, and I’ve got all the paint and painting supplies rounded up. I’m hoping to start painting the entire interior of the house on Monday.

I need to get things organized and get the house on the market quickly, so I’m working at it all day every day. When I need to take a break from the heavy stuff, I find a more leisurely job to do - like wrapping several hundred dollars of coins. I’ll keep them handy until the last garage sale, then put whatever is left (if anything) in the bank.

I hope we don’t get any earthquakes or hurricanes before I’m out of here. I’m cycling the contents of my evacuation kit into the pantry. I’ll try to minimize shopping in the coming weeks by using up stuff that I have on hand. The freezer and pantry are so full that I shouldn’t have to buy much more than dairy and bread. I had Dinty Moore stew from the evac kit for dinner tonight.

Getting the house listed and my stuff moved are my top priorities right now - I’m running out of money and need to get things done as quickly as possible. I’ll try to check in a little more frequently than I have just lately, but I’m not making any promises. It’s just the way things are. Oh, and I will make the time to tell you about where I’m going and how I selected my destination. It’s good stuff!

Technorati Tags: Hawaii, moving, packing, selling my home

September 27, 2008

Creating a little curb appeal

My house isn’t really visible from the street. What you see instead in a rather pathetic looking fence over a lumpy driveway, the top of my carport and the tiny garden outside my gate. Not an impressive first impression. It doesn’t help that the mail carrier runs over the front of the garden six days a week and that neighbors or their guests sometimes park there. The plant at the base of the mailbox post is down to just a few crushed clusters. I’ve always known it by its politically incorrect name of Wandering Jew, but I’ve just looked it up and see that it’s also called Inch Plant or Tradescantia zebrina. It grows to moster proportiions in our tropical climate, but it’s no match for a multi-ton vehicle.

I’ve replanted the area several times in the years I’ve lived here, thinking that people would see the plants and change their habits. Since that hasn’t worked I decided to try something that a few neighbors have done to remedy the same problem. The couple who tend the garden above have done a lovley job with a very limited amount of space, and they’ve managed to keep cars from spoiling their efforts.

Rocks that blend in with the landscaping won’t do. I don’t want someone hitting one in the dark and damaging their car, even if they shouldn’t be parking there. I’m not that petty, and besides, folks around here have been known to go to extreme measures to get even when they feel someone has done them wrong. I spent a good portion of my day today hauling volcanic rocks (which are dense with metals and quite heavy) and then painting them.

While the paint was drying (and after the mail was delivered) I planted three dozen bedding plants. I picked them up over a week ago, then didn’t plant them becuase I needed to get the rocks in place. My back has been giving me fits so I had to wait on that. A couple of the plants weren’t looking too healthy in their little two-inch posts, but hopefuly most will survive. These are Arachis pintol “Golden Glory.” I know nothing about them except that they look like peanut plants and should do well as ground cover on our hot, dry Leeward coast once they’ve gotten over their transplant shock and had a chance to spread their roots. They’ll need a lot of watering and TLC for a few weeks, then should fill all available space with little encouragement or attention.

Here’s a little painting tip while we’re waiting for the paint to dry. I wanted to paint all sides of the rocks so I had to wait for the tops to dry, then flip them over and paint the other side. Since I would be using the brush again within an hour or so I didn’t want to bother with cleaning it, but I didn’t want it to dry out either. I wear disposable gloves while painting. Holding the brush in one hand, I used the other hand to peel that glove off and over the paint brush. I put it in the shed, out of the sun, and it stayed moist and pliable until I was ready to use it again. Most any plastic will do - kitchen wrap, shopping bags - I’ve even used bread bags for this. If there’s gong to be a longer wait, put the wrapped brush in the fridge. It will keep for quite a while - at least several days, in my experience.

Late in the day the rocks were dry and I hauled them out front. I may add some others later to make a solid border - I haven’t decided yet. For right now, these will do to keep cars off of the new plants. Unless someone steals them.

Technorati Tags: garden border, gardening, yard work

September 25, 2008

Neighborhood growth revisited

We’ll be getting new neighbors soon. Back in November of 2006 I first blogged about the transitional housing community that was planned for some vacant government property near my home. When I first met with the state official in charge of the project I was told that completion was scheduled for September of 2007. The work was being fast-tracked because of the housing crisis throughout the state and the alarming number of homeless camping on beaches and other public lands. Bureaucracy is a slow and lumbering beast, and it was early 2008 before we began to see any signs of development.

Last April we finally started seeing real progress. Keawi and scrub brush had been bulldozed and hauled away. Truckloads of building materials arrived daily. The entrance street for our community was dug up so water lines could be upgraded and extended into the new project. At public meetings before construction started, we asked that the sub-street work be completed prior to commencement of building. It seemed sensible to us (neighboring homeowners) to dig up the street, do the work, and then get it put back together before the daily onslaught of construction traffic began. I guess the state didn’t see any logic in the suggestion.

A few weeks ago I blogged about the headaches that could have been avoided if the state had listened to us. Sure enough, the old and crumbling water lines could not handle the added traffic and new connections. Water main breaks became a way of life. Our community has, for the most part, rallied in support of the transitional housing development. We know our property values will decline a bit, but the homeless situation is so huge that everyone needs to make a few sacrifices as solutions are put in place. We all wish our personal sacrifices hadn’t incuded giving up little luxuries like access to fresh water, but that phase of the work seems to finally have reached completion. All of the excavations beneath our streets were filled in about a week ago. It’s still a bumpy, muddy mess, but repaving should commence as soon as the fill has had time to settle and compact.

I’ve grumbled a little about the disruptions, but I haven’t really minded. If it gets on my nerves I only need to remind myself that I have been incredibly blessed. A half-mile from my home people live in tents. Many of them have been without the security of solid walls and the comforts of on-demand utilities for years. While I’m fretting about how slow my work has been lately, some of them are wishing they had an address to put on job applications. While my neighbor is looking for funding for a franchise opportunity, they’re looking for a few dollars to put shoes on their kids’ feet. Going without showers for a day or two and being awakened by heavy machinery every day - not that big a deal.

A year ago this was nothing but a weedy, brush-filled lot. Eight months ago the transformation started to become visible. Only a few weeks ago the new buildings looked raw and unfinished sitting in their muddy field. Since then we’ve seen streets and parking areas paved. I was excited the first time I saw the stair-railings in place - the first decorative touches I’ve seen. It makes the dream more real. I’ll be getting new neighbors soon. That’s pretty cool.

Technorati Tags: construction, Hawaii, homeless, housing crisis, transitional housing

September 21, 2008

Farmer’s Market fun

The last time I went to the Farmer’s Market I arrived late in the morning. I had a good time, but there was very little fresh produce available. I’ve been meaning to go back and finally managed it today. This time I went at around ten in the morning and found an abundance of beautiful fruit and vegetables on display.

Many things that are availabe only seasonally in other areas grow year-round in Hawaii. The fall root vegetables are some of my favorites and were featured today, but were by no means the only selections on display to choose from.

Locally grown bananas, papayas and mangoes were displayed alongside farm-fresh eggs. Most of our eggs are shipped over from the mainland and may be two weeks old before they appear in stores, but there are several egg farms here on the Waianae Coast. The difference in taste is remakable.

I bought some honey a few days ago. Local honey contains local pollens and can help build resistance to allergies, so I consume a lot of it. Even though I didn’t need any today, it was nice to see that a bee-keeper from Molokai is now selling his honey here.

Despite the early hour it was quite warm and bubble drinks and other cool beverages sold well today. There were seveal orchid vendors on hand, too.

I don’t generally eat early in the day, but omelette breakfasts were sold in addition to plate lunches this time.

Music is a part of every gathering, of course. Danny remembered me from last month. He spotted me in the crowd, announced to one and all that the next song was for his mistress and proceeded to sing Daytime Friends and Nightime Lovers for me. What a tease!

I remembered to bring my mesh green bag this time. I packed it with beets, some honeycomb and a package of butter mochi. I grew up eating honeycomb, but have never found it in Hawaii before, so I’m looking forward to enjoying this taste treat from the past. I’m also looking forward to finding whatever surprises show up next time the Farmer’s Market comes to the Waianae Coast.

Technorati Tags: farmer’s market, fresh produce, Hawaii, Waianae Coast

September 18, 2008

Neighbors lose all to fire

A brush fire destroyed a homeless encampment right up the coast from me today. Four families lost what few possessions they owned. Some might consider this a small thing. After all, how much could they have lost, living as they do? A tent, a few clothes, perhaps some cooking implements. Try looking at it from a different perspective, though. This morning they had homes (albiet, unconventional ones) and their stuff, whatever that consisted of. Tonight they have nothing. How is their current situation any different from that of someone whose wood-sided home suffered the same fate? Each scenario is as devastating as the other. Each leaves its survivors without shelter or worldly goods. The Red Cross, other organizations and concerned citiziens will offer the same assistance, regardless of former circumstances: temporary shelter, food and clothing. The difference will come in a few days or weeks or however long it takes for red tape to untangle itself. It’s a good bet that my tent-dwelling neighbors did not have homeowner’s policies. No insurance adjustor will come around, assess losses and order checks to be written. Contractors won’t be clamoring to help them rebuild what they’ve lost. They will likely return to situations very similar to those that existed when they began their day this morning. Only then will differences emerge. The suburbanite will eventually have sturdy walls and a roof again. Those with a less substantial support system will pitch their new tents in an uncharred spot. All will try to get on with their lives in whatever way works for them. Tonight they are all the same, people who have lost all that they own and are worthy of compassion.

I was struck by one point in all of the news reports about the fire. It’s one small fact which may help explain why these people live as they do. Several new homeless shelters and transition centers have opened up on the coast over the last year or so. Hundreds of formerly homeless citizens of the Waianae Coast are now living in more conventional circumstances. Hundreds more are still on waiting lists, but there are others who have never applied for assistance and maybe never will. Mental illness, social dysfunction, drug use and criminal backgrounds have kept some out of the system. I don’t know the backstories or circumstances of the folks involved in today’s tragedy. What I do know is this: they have pets. Homeless shelters and transition centers don’t allow pets. I understand the practical reasons why this is considered necessary, but I think it’s a problem that can be solved. Following Hurricane Katrina it became known that many people in the devastated area had refused to leave their homes because evacuation centers would not allow them to bring their pets. They chose not to abandon those valued family members and some paid a terrible price. Changes have been made since then. Some municipalities now make arrangements for pets to be included in evacuation shelter plans. Surely similar considerations should be made for the homeless. When all you have is a dog and a sleeping bag, an offer of shelter that requires you to abandon your companion must feel like no solution at all. Solving the homeless problem requires more than just money and shelters. It needs understanding hearts and a little creative planning. And that’s all I have to say about that.

Technorati Tags: fire, hawaii, homeless, homeless solutions

September 4, 2008

I told you I live in the country

It must seem to you like I’ve done nothing but deal with computer problems for the last two weeks. It’s felt like that to me, but I have done a few other things. Last Friday I did a termite inspection for a home right up the coast from me. I enjoyed a little “talk story” time with the very nice local couple who own the home and they introduced me to their pets. That’s Poomba and Wilbur up there, who behave more like puppies than pigs one generation removed from feral. They were pushing their snouts through the fencing to try to check me out, but that made it hard to see their faces. Their papa stepped in and rattled their food bowl so I could get a picture. First thing I noticed about them: they didn’t stink. I’ve been around pigs before and this was a new and different experience. I’m thinking that their pen must be cleaned every day. There’s plenty of mud in their pen for them to wallow and cool off in, so they were muddy, but not smelly at all.

Feral pigs are a real problem in Hawaii. They’re quite destructive to our forests and have contributed to the loss and/or endangerment of indigenous plants and habitats. Hawaii has no indigenous mammals, so all of them that exist here now are intrusive in our fragile environment. Feral pigs are controlled mostly by hunters, a solution which works well because pork plays a big part in local diets. Many of my neighbors are hunters and most of us benefit by having local pork in the freezer year-round. Poomba and Wilbur were found after a hunter took their mother. Not wanting to leave the piglings to fend for themselves, he brought them to my clients, who have been great foster-parents to them and won’t be turning them into kalua pork.

Update on my computer woes: I bought a cooling pad and a wireless mouse today. My wrist is already inflamed after only a couple of days of using the flat keyboard and touchpad on the lappy, so I’m hoping the more ergonomic design will help with that. I also found my tech geek this morning. He’s a guy I’ve known for a while, but I only found out today that he specializes in rescuing damaged hard drives. I’ll take my old computer to him sometime soon & see if he can extract the documents, photos & other data that I can’t access right now.

Technorati Tags: computer accessories, computers, feral pigs, feral animals, Hawaii, environment